John McLaughlin (musician)
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
| John McLaughlin | |
|---|---|
 John McLaughlin performing in 2008 |
|
| Background information | |
| Also known as | Mahavishnu John McLaughlin |
| Born | 4 January 1942 Doncaster, South Yorkshire, England |
| Genres | Jazz fusion, jazz, world fusion, post-bop |
| Occupations | Musician, songwriter |
| Instruments | Guitar, keyboard |
| Years active | 1963–present |
| Labels | Abstract Logix, Verve, Douglas |
| Associated acts | Miles Davis, Tony Williams Lifetime, Mahavishnu Orchestra, Shakti, Remember Shakti, Paco de LucÃa, Al Di Meola, Carlos Santana, Katia Labèque, Zakir Hussain |
| Website | www.johnmclaughlin.com |
| Notable instruments | |
| Gibson EDS-1275 Gibson L-4 Gibson Hummingbird Fender Mustang Gibson Les Paul Custom Abraham Wechter-built "Shakti guitar" Ovation acoustic |
|
In 2010 guitarist Jeff Beck called him "the best guitarist alive".[1] The Indian tabla maestro Zakir Hussain has called him "one of the greatest and one of the important musicians of our times". In 2003 McLaughlin was ranked 49th in Rolling Stone magazine list of the "100 Greatest Guitarists of All Time".[2]
After contributing to several key British groups of the early sixties and making his first solo record Extrapolation (with Tony Oxley and John Surman) he moved to the USA where he played with Tony Williams's group Lifetime and then with Miles Davis on his landmark electric jazz-fusion albums In A Silent Way, Bitches Brew, A Tribute to Jack Johnson and On The Corner. His 1970s electric band, the Mahavishnu Orchestra, performed a technically virtuosic and complex style of music that fused electric jazz and rock with Indian influences.
Contents |
Biography
1960s
From a family of musicians (his mother being a concert violinist), McLaughlin studied violin and piano as a child and took up the guitar at the age of 11, exploring styles from flamenco to the jazz of Django Reinhardt and Stephane Grappelli. He moved to London from Yorkshire in the early 1960s, playing with Alexis Korner[3] and the Marzipan Twisters before moving on to Georgie Fame and the Blue Flames, the Graham Bond Organisation (in 1963)[4] and Brian Auger. During the 1960s he often had to support himself with session work which he often found unsatisfying[5] but which enhanced his playing and sight-reading.McLaughlin moved to the U.S. in 1969 to join Tony Williams' group Lifetime. A recording from the Record Plant, NYC, dated 25 March 1969, exists of McLaughlin jamming with Jimi Hendrix. McLaughlin recollects "we played one night, just a jam session. And we played from 2 until 8, in the morning. I thought it was a wonderful experience! I was playing an acoustic guitar with a pick-up. Um, flat-top guitar, and Jimi was playing an electric. Yeah, what a lovely time! Had he lived today, you'd find that he would be employing everything he could get his hands on, and I mean acoustic guitar, synthesizers, orchestras, voices, anything he could get his hands on he'd use!"
He played on Miles Davis' albums In A Silent Way, Bitches Brew (which has a track named after him), On The Corner, Big Fun (where he is featured soloist on "Go Ahead John") and A Tribute to Jack Johnson. In the liner notes to Jack Johnson, Davis called McLaughlin's playing "far in." McLaughlin returned to the Davis band for one night of a week-long club date, recorded and released as part of the album Live-Evil and of the Cellar Door boxed set. His reputation as a "first-call" session player grew, resulting in recordings as a sideman with Miroslav Vitous, Larry Coryell, Joe Farrell, Wayne Shorter, Carla Bley, the Rolling Stones, and others.
1970s
In 1973 McLaughlin collaborated with Carlos Santana, also a disciple of Sri Chinmoy, on an album of devotional songs, Love Devotion Surrender, which included recordings of Coltrane compositions including a movement of A Love Supreme. He has also worked with the jazz composers Carla Bley and Gil Evans.
The Mahavishnu Orchestra
Main article: Mahavishnu Orchestra
McLaughlin's 1970s electric band, the Mahavishnu Orchestra,[7] included violinist Jerry Goodman, keyboardist Jan Hammer, bassist Rick Laird and drummer Billy Cobham
and performed a technically difficult and complex style of music that
fused electric jazz and rock with Eastern and Indian influences. This
band helped establish fusion as a new and growing style. McLaughlin's
playing at this time was distinguished by fast solos and exotic musical scales.The Mahavishnu Orchestra's personality clashes were as explosive as their performances and consequently the first incarnation of the group split in late 1973 after two years and three albums, one a live recording entitled "Between Nothingness and Eternity". In 2001 the "Lost Trident Sessions" album was released, having been recorded in 1973 but shelved when the group disbanded. McLaughlin then reformed the group with Narada Michael Walden (drums), Jean-Luc Ponty (violin), Ralphe Armstrong (bass), and Gayle Moran (keyboards and vocals), and a string and horn section (McLaughlin referred to this as "the real Mahavishnu Orchestra"). This incarnation of the group recorded two more albums, Apocalypse with the London Symphony Orchestra and Visions of the Emerald Beyond. A scaled-down quartet was formed with McLaughlin, Walden on drums, Armstrong on bass and Stu Goldberg on keyboards and synthesizer, which generated a third "Mahavishnu 2" recording in 1976 largely due to contractual obligations, Inner Worlds.
Shakti
McLaughlin then became absorbed in his acoustic playing with his Indian classical music based group Shakti (energy). McLaughlin had already been studying Indian classical music and playing the veena for several years. The group featured Lakshminarayanan L. Shankar (violin), Zakir Hussain (tabla), Thetakudi Harihara Vinayakram (ghatam) and earlier Ramnad Raghavan (mridangam). The group recorded three albums; 'A Handful of Beauty' (1975), 'Shakti' (1976), and 'Natural Elements' (1977). Based on both Carnatic and Hindustani styles, along with extended use of konnakol, the band introduced ragas and Indian percussion to many jazz aficionados.[8]In this group McLaughlin played a custom-made steel-string acoustic guitar made by Abe Wechter and the Gibson guitar company that featured two tiers of strings over the soundhole: a conventional six-string configuration and seven strings strung underneath at a forty-five degree angle - these were independently tuneable "sympathetic strings" much like those on a sitar or veena. The instrument's vina-like scalloped fretboard enabled McLaughlin to bend strings far beyond the reach of a conventional fretboard. McLaughlin grew so accustomed to the freedom it provided him that he had the fretboard scalloped on his Gibson Byrdland electric guitar.
Other activities
1980s
The short-lived One Truth Band recorded one studio album, Electric Dreams with L. Shankar on violins, Stu Goldberg on keyboards, Fernando Saunders on electric bass and Tony Smith on drums. After the dissolution of the One Truth Band, McLaughlin toured in a guitar duo with Christian Escoudé.[10]With the group Fuse One, he released two albums in 1980 and 1982.[11]
In 1986 he appeared with Dexter Gordon in Bertrand Tavernier's film "Round Midnight." He also composed The Mediterranean Concerto, orchestrated by Michael Gibbs. The world premier featured McLaughlin and the Los Angeles Philharmonic. It was recorded in 1988 with Michael Tilson Thomas conducting the London Symphony Orchestra. Unlike what is typical practice in classical music, the concerto includes sections where McLaughlin improvises. Also included on the recording were five duets between McLaughlin and his then-girlfriend Katia Labèque.
In the late '80s and early '90s McLaughlin recorded and performed live with a trio including bassist Kai Eckhardt and percussionist Trilok Gurtu. The group recorded two albums: Live at The Royal Festival Hall and Que Alegria, with latter featuring Dominique DiPiazza on bass for all but two tracks; parts of the subsequent tour also included Jeff Berlin on bass. These recordings saw a return to acoustic instruments for McLaughlin, performing on nylon-string guitar. On "Live at the Royal Festival Hall" McLaughlin utilised a unique guitar synth which enabled him to effectively "loop" guitar parts and play over them live. The synth also featured a pedal which provided sustain when pressed. McLaughlin played parts which sound overdubbed and creating lush soundscapes, aided by Gurtu's unique percussive sounds. This approach is used to great effect in the track "Florianapolis", amongst others.
1990s
In the early 1990s he toured with his trio on the Que Alegria album. The trio comprised John McLaughlin, percussionist Trilok Gurtu and bass player Kai Eckhardt (later replaced by Dominique DiPiazza). Following this period he recorded and toured with The Heart of Things featuring Gary Thomas, Dennis Chambers, Matthew Garrison, Jim Beard and Otmaro RuÃz. In 1993 he released a Bill Evans tribute album entitled "Time Remembered: John McLaughlin Plays Bill Evans" with his acoustic guitar backed by the acoustic guitars of the Aighetta Quartet and the acoustic bass of Yan Maresz. In recent times he has toured with Remember Shakti.In addition to original Shakti member Zakir Hussain, this group has also featured eminent Indian musicians U. Srinivas, V. Selvaganesh, Shankar Mahadevan, Shivkumar Sharma, and Hariprasad Chaurasia. In 1996, John McLaughlin, Paco DeLucia and Al Di Meola (known collectively as "The Guitar Trio") reunited for a world tour and recorded an album by the same name. In that same year he recorded "The Promise". Also notable during the period were his performances with Elvin Jones and Joey DeFrancesco.
2000s
In 2003 he recorded a ballet score, Thieves and Poets, along with arrangements for classical guitar ensemble of favorite jazz standards and a three-DVD instructional video on improvisation entitled "This is the Way I Do It" (which contributed to the development of video lessons.[12]) In June 2006 he released the post-bop/jazz fusion album Industrial Zen, on which he experimented with the Godin Glissentar as well as continuing to expand his guitar-synth repertoire.In 2007 he left Universal Records and joined Abstract Logix. Recording sessions for his first album on that label took place in April. That summer, he began touring with a new jazz fusion quartet, the 4th Dimension, consisting of keyboardist/drummer Gary Husband, bassist Hadrian Feraud, and drummer Mark Mondesir. During the 4th Dimension's tour, an "instant CD" entitled Live USA 2007: Official Bootleg was made available comprising soundboard recordings of six pieces from the group's first performance. Following completion of the tour, McLaughlin sorted through recordings from each night to release a second MP3 download-only collection entitled, Official Pirate: Best of the American Tour 2007. During this time, McLaughlin also released another instructional DVD, The Gateway to Rhythm, featuring Indian percussionist and Remember Shakti bandmate Selva Ganesh Vinayakram (or V. Selvaganesh), focusing on the Indian rhythmic system of konnakol. McLaughlin also remastered and released a shelved 1980 project called The Trio of Doom, featuring jazz/fusion luminaries Jaco Pastorius and Tony Williams. The project had been aborted due to conflicts between Williams and Pastorius as well as what was at the time a mutual dissatisfaction with the results of their performance.
On 28 July 2007, McLaughlin performed at Eric Clapton's Crossroads Guitar Festival in Bridgeview, Illinois.
McLaughlin performed with Mahavishnu Orchestra drummer Billy Cobham at the 44th Montreux Jazz Festival, in Montreux, Switzerland, on 2 July 2010, for the first time since the band split up. In November 2010, a new book was released by Abstract Logix Books entitled Follow Your Heart- John McLaughlin Song by Song by Walter Kolosky, who also wrote the book Power, Passion and Beauty - The Story of the Legendary Mahavishnu Orchestra. The book discussed each song McLaughlin wrote and contained photographs never seen before.
Influence
McLaughlin has been cited as a major influence on many 1970s and 1980s fusion guitarists. Examples are prominent players such as Steve Morse, Eric Johnson, Mike Stern, Paul Masvidal, Al Di Meola, Pebber Brown, Shawn Lane, and Scott Henderson. His influence did not stop in the 80's, though; hardcore punk guitarist Greg Ginn of Black Flag cited Birds of Fire by The Mahavishnu Orchestra which inspired him to record more progressive guitar work and even record instrumental songs. Current players still hold him as highly influential, including Omar Rodriguez of The Mars Volta. According to Pat Metheny, McLaughlin has changed the evolution of the guitar during several of his periods of playing. McLaughlin is also considered a major influence on composers in the fusion genre. In an interview with Downbeat, Chick Corea remarked that "...what John McLaughlin did with the electric guitar set the world on its ear. No one ever heard an electric guitar played like that before, and it certainly inspired me. John's band, more than my experience with Miles, led me to want to turn the volume up and write music that was more dramatic and made your hair stand on end". Frank Zappa once said of McLaughlin: "A person would be a moron not to appreciate McLaughlin's technique. The guy has certainly found out how to operate a guitar as if it were a machine gun. But I'm not always enthusiastic about the lines I hear or the ways in which they're used. I don't think you can fault him, though, for the amount of time and effort it must have taken to play an instrument that fast. I think anybody who can play that fast is just wonderful. And I'm sure 90% of teenage America would agree, since the whole trend in the business has been "faster is better."[citation needed]Perhaps the most unique tribute to McLaughlin's influence came in the 1970s from the musician and comedian Darryl Rhoades. In the 1970s, he led the "Hahavishnu Orchestra," which did parodies of the funk, rock and jazz musical styles of the era. [13]
Discography
Main article: John McLaughlin discography
Family
John has been married to the French pianist Katia Labeque, who was also a member of his band in the early 1980s. He is currently married to Ina Behrend with whom he has a son, Luke (b.1997). Ref. http://www.abstractlogix.com/interview_view.php?idno=23Equipment
- Gibson EDS-1275 - McLaughlin played the Gibson doubleneck between 1971 and 1973,[14] his first years with the Mahavishnu Orchestra;[15] this is the guitar which, amplified through a 100-watt Marshall amplifier "in meltdown mode," produced the signature McLaughlin sound hailed by Guitar Player as one of the "50 Greatest Tones of All Time."[16]
- Double Rainbow doubleneck guitar made by Rex Bogue, which McLaughlin played from 1973 to 1975.[17][18]
- The first Abraham Wechter-built acoustic "Shakti guitar,"[19] a customized Gibson J-200[20] with drone strings transversely across the soundhole.[21]
- He currently plays Godin electric/MIDI guitars, one of which can be seen on the Eric Clapton's Crossroads Chicago 2007 DVD.
Posts
